Jon Rahm Among 12 Champions Exempt for 122nd U.S. Open at The Country Club
More than 9,000 entries have been accepted for the 10th consecutive time

LIBERTY CORNER, N.J. (April 14, 2022) – The United States Golf Association (USGA) has accepted a total of 9,265 entries, including 12 champions, for the 122nd U.S. Open Championship at The Country Club, in Brookline, Mass. The U.S. Open will be held at the club for the fourth time on June 16-19, 2022.

More than 9,000 U.S. Open entries were accepted for the 10th consecutive time and the 13th time overall. The number of entries is the sixth-highest total in championship history. The USGA accepted entries for the 2022 U.S. Open from golfers in 50 states, including 282 from host state Massachusetts, as well as the District of Columbia and 79 foreign countries.

“The USGA appreciates the continued worldwide interest in competing in the U.S. Open and we are pleased to offer thousands of golfers an opportunity to follow their dream of playing in a major championship,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer for the USGA. “The U.S. Open is unique in major championship golf in that the qualifying process provides golfers of all ages, races and abilities a chance to play their way into the field. We look forward to welcoming 156 players to the championship and showcasing The Country Club in June.”

Jon Rahm, who became the first player from Spain to win a USGA championship when he captured the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course last year, leads the list of 48 players who are fully exempt into the field (see list below). Rahm will seek to become the eighth man to win consecutive U.S. Opens.

Joining Rahm are 11 other U.S. Open champions who are fully exempt from having to qualify: Bryson DeChambeau (2020), Jim Furyk (2003), Dustin Johnson (2016), Martin Kaymer (2014), Brooks Koepka (2017, 2018), Rory McIlroy (2011), Justin Rose (2013), Webb Simpson (2012), Jordan Spieth (2015), Gary Woodland (2019) and Tiger Woods (2000, 2002, 2008).

Local qualifying, conducted over 18 holes at 109 sites in 44 U.S. states and Canada, will take place between April 25-May 23. Those players who advance out of local qualifying will join a group of locally exempt players in final qualifying, which will be conducted over 36 holes at nine U.S. and two international sites. Two qualifiers are set for Monday, May 23, one in Texas and one in Japan, while nine are scheduled on Monday, June 6: two in Ohio and one each in California, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, New York, Oregon and Canada.

England will not host final qualifying this year due to international travel requirements, but as was done in 2021, an exemption category will allow players to earn entry based on the four-event U.S. Open 2022 European Qualifying Series. The top 10 aggregate point earners from those DP World Tour events (Betfred British Masters, Soudal Open, Dutch Open and Porsche European Open) who are otherwise not exempt will earn a place in the U.S. Open field.

Two U.S. Open champions, Lucas Glover (2009) and Graeme McDowell (2010), will attempt to qualify for the 122nd championship. McDowell, 42, is scheduled to play in the Dallas, Texas, final qualifier on May 23, while Glover, 42, is in the Columbus, Ohio, final qualifier on June 6.

To be eligible, a player must have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 1.4, or be a professional. Grant Goltz, a 46-year-old amateur from DeKalb, Ill., submitted his entry just one minute before the deadline of 5 p.m. EDT on April 13. Dan Ireland, a 58-year-old amateur from Wynantskill, N.Y., was the first entrant on Feb. 23.

The number of fully exempt players will increase with the inclusion of the top 60 point leaders and ties from the Official World Golf Ranking®, as of May 23 and June 6. The winner of the PGA Championship (May 19-22) and any multiple winners of PGA Tour events that award a full-point allocation for the season-ending Tour Championship will also earn exemptions.

Exemptions will also be awarded to the 2020-21 top finisher on the Asian Tour Order of Merit, the 2021-22 top finisher on the ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit and the 2021-22 top finisher on the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit, who are not otherwise exempt as of May 23.

The U.S. Open has previously been contested at The Country Club in 1913, 1963 and 1988, and each championship was decided in a playoff. In 1988, Curtis Strange won the first of his back-to-back U.S. Open titles when he defeated Nick Faldo by four strokes in an 18-hole playoff. Francis Ouimet (1913) and Julius Boros (1963) also prevailed in 18-hole playoffs. One of the five founding member clubs of the USGA, The Country Club will host its 17th USGA championship and first since the 2013 U.S. Amateur. The total of 17 USGA championships is tied for second-most all time.

More information about the 2022 U.S. Open at The Country Club, including local and final qualifying schedules, is available at usopen.com.

The list of the 48 golfers who are fully exempt into the 2022 U.S. Open (as of April 13):

 

Abraham Ancer

 

Billy Horschel

 

Joaquin Niemann

Daniel Berger

 

Viktor Hovland

 

Louis Oosthuizen

Sam Burns

 

Sungjae Im

 

a-James Piot

Patrick Cantlay

 

Dustin Johnson

 

Jon Rahm

Paul Casey

 

Martin Kaymer

 

Patrick Reed

Stewart Cink

 

Brooks Koepka

 

Justin Rose

Corey Conners

 

Jason Kokrak

 

Xander Schauffele

Bryson DeChambeau

 

Shane Lowry

 

Scottie Scheffler

a-Nicholas Dunlap

 

Hideki Matsuyama

 

a-Laird Shepherd

Harris English

 

Rory McIlroy

 

Webb Simpson

Tony Finau

 

Phil Mickelson

 

Cameron Smith

Jim Furyk

 

Guido Migliozzi

 

Jordan Spieth

Sergio Garcia

 

Francesco Molinari

 

Justin Thomas

Branden Grace

 

Collin Morikawa

 

Erik van Rooyen

a-Austin Greaser

 

Kevin Na

 

Gary Woodland

a-Stewart Hagestad

 

a-Keita Nakajima

 

Tiger Woods

 

 

 

 

 

BOLD - U.S. Open champion

 

 

 

a-amateur

 

 

 

 

 

About the USGA
The USGA is a nonprofit organization that celebrates, serves and advances the game of golf. Founded in 1894, we conduct many of golf’s premier professional and amateur championships, including the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open Presented by ProMedica. With The R&A, we govern the sport via a global set of playing, equipment, handicapping and amateur status rules. The USGA campus in Liberty Corner, New Jersey, is home to the Association’s Research and Test Center, where science and innovation are fueling a healthy and sustainable game for the future. The campus is also home to the USGA Golf Museum, where we honor the game by curating the world’s most comprehensive archive of golf artifacts. To learn more, visit usga.org.

For further information: Brian DePasquale, USGA Communications, 908-655-8395, bdepasquale@usga.org